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The Maple Leafs prospect should be a lock to patrol the blue line for Canada at the 2013 world junior championship in Ufa, Russia.

Rielly’s thoughts? Hold on a minute.

“I’m aware of it and I don’t agree with that completely,” Rielly said on Monday afternoon as he and his Moose Jaw Warriors teammates travelled to Prince George, B.C., for a Western Hockey League game against the Cougars.

“There are a lot of high-end guys who are going to be at camp, and there are some pretty good players who won’t even be there. It’s very deep. I’m going to have to go in there and prove myself like everybody else.”

Rielly’s views on the depth of the defence corps is shared by everyone else who is paying attention to the world juniors. The National Hockey League lockout indeed has had a trickle-down influence and another Leafs pick, Stuart Percy, is among those defencemen who might have been named to Canada’s preliminary roster on Monday had the NHL and NHL Players’ Association been on the same page.

Ditto for Cody Ceci, Duncan Siemens, Ryan Pulock and Slater Koekkoek.

Though Rielly is right — he will have to prove himself like the other 36 players at camp when it opens next week in Calgary — he’s not an unknown to head coach Steve Spott.

If there has been a knock against Rielly, it’s that he is not strong defensively. But his above-average skating ability can get him out of trouble, and there are few who make a first pass as crisply and accurately as he does from the back end.

There’s not an area of Rielly’s game that is a concern for Spott. The 18-year-old was one of Canada’s better defencemen in the Canada-Russia challenge in August.

“I’m a big fan of Morgan Rielly,” Spott said. “I’ve had the opportunity to win a gold medal with him at the Ivan Hlinka tournament (in 2011) and I can tell you he is a complete player.

“Sometimes when these players who have Morgan’s ability, they are able to press the envelope sometimes. I can assure you that when we meet with Morgan on Monday (when players arrive for camp), his role will be clearly defined.”

Those who see Rielly as a risky player because he jumps into the rush aren’t getting the full picture. He knows just as well when to hang back as he does to lead the way, and he’s not often caught out of position.

That knowledge should be a benefit on the larger ice surface that Canada will play on in Russia.

“I fully expect he will play a complete game, a safe game and a risk-free game for Canada through the evaluation process,” Spott said. “I’m not worried about his risk at all. Those players will always be challenged to eliminate the risk in their game. He understands the expectations.”

There was some thought that Percy and fellow Leafs pick Matt Finn, another defenceman, had a shot at cracking Canada’s preliminary roster. Winger Josh Leivo might have been there too had he not been suffering from post-concussion symptoms.

But the Leafs aren’t disappointed.

“You can only control what you can control, and we tell our kids that all the time,” Leafs vice-president of player development Dave Poulin said. “Everybody had a chance. It’s a good and balanced roster.

“We’re happy for Morgan. He continues to play better with better players.”

For Rielly, who has 26 points (six goals and 20 assists) in 30 games for the Warriors, the selection camp is the final barrier that stands in the way of realizing a life-long dream.

“It’s pretty tough to explain,” Rielly said of his emotions. “As a kid, when you watch at Christmas, it’s something you want to do. I think it will help that I played for (Spott) before. I’ll do what they ask. I can’t change too much. It’s going to be a cool experience.”

Canada will take a roster of 23 players — three goalies, seven defencemen and 13 forwards — to Ufa, Russia, for the 2013 world junior championship.

Canada’s first game is on Boxing Day versus Germany.

Canada’s roster for the selection camp, Dec. 10-15 in Calgary (with home town, team and NHL rights) * — member of 2012 national junior team: